Council of Chief State School Officers

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
530198090
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Washington, DC, US
Phone
+1-202-336-7000
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Elementary, Secondary Education, K - 12

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$29,284,509
Expenses
$28,903,243
Assets
$45,118,332
Liabilities
$23,402,380

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ERIC MACKEY (PRESIDENT)
  • RICHARD WOODS (PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE)
  • CHRIS REYKDAL (PRESIDENT-ELECT)
  • KIRSTEN BAESLER (PRESIDENT)
  • CARISSA MILLER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)

Highest reported compensation

  • CARISSA MILLER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $449,448 total reported compensation
  • BRUCE BUTERBAUGH (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $312,588 total reported compensation
  • DANIEL FRENCH (CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER): $292,327 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To ensure every student is prepared for success in college, careers, and life.

What it reported doing in 2024

Ccsso in 2025 supported our members to lead effectively and serve their students, educators and communities in their states and territories. On our annual member survey 96% of responding chiefs and deputies indicated they are satisfied with their membership and 93% rated ccsso programs and benefits as very good/excellent.this year ccsso launched the states leading network, a nonpartisan network designed to help states lead with clarity and strength in a changing landscape. Our high-quality instructional materials and professional development network continued to grow, expanding to 16 states. Ccsso released an impact report, demonstrating increased student access to high-quality instructional materials across the states as a result of this network and exploring their work to align educator professional development to those materials. Ccsso continued its support to states around math after publishing in late 2024 a nation of problem-solvers: how state leaders can help every student achieve in math. Mathematics is the backbone of a 21st-century education and is crucial for the development of critical thinking, problem-solving and innovation. Ccsso's report supports state chiefs as they seek effective strategies to enhance mathematics outcomes for all students. The report has seen nearly 9,000 sessions since it was published.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 94% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 95% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 70
  • Transparency & Controls: 80
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 39
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 78.2%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 77.7%; rating input score 78
  • Fundraising efficiency: $0.7 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 98.3%; rating input score 98; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 1.3%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.56; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.52; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 10.1%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -5.6% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.5% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.1% per year; rating input score 100; 43rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 4 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 78.2% of revenue deployed · 77.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $22.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $449K · 24 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $911K reported
  • Consistency: 32 of 33 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 15 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 2/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 39/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 53/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 20/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 27/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.